Free Entry/Land Access

Thursday, January 29, 2004

A discussion paper on the need to reform mineral tenure law in Canada by Karen Campbell, West Coast Environmental Law staff counsel, January 2004.

What is free entry?

The free entry system is the dominant means of granting mineral tenures in Canada today. It gives mining companies the exclusive right to Crown-owned mineral substances from the surface of their claim to an unlimited extension downwards. There are 3 primary rights associated with the law of free entry:

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

(Toronto) The Ontario Superior Court of Justice has ordered that Solid Gold Resources Corp. cannot carry on any further exploration activity on its claims block for 120 days, and that during this time the company and the Ontario Crown must engage with Wahgoshig in a process of meaningful consultation and accommodation about any such further exploration.

Thursday, December 22, 2011

After weeks of delay and two adjournments, Wahgoshig First Nation finally had its day in court on December 20, 2011. The hearing of Wahgoshig's injunction motion lasted the full day and went in to the early evening. A decision is expected in mid-late January.

Friday, December 2, 2011

Wilkes, James. Decolonizing Environmental Management: A Case Study of Kitchenuhmaykoosib InninuwugBy James Wilkes. This study was done as a Masters thesis at Trent University and is posted here at the request of the author. Canadian environmental management involving Indigenous communities is at a crossroads. First Nation communities in regions holding mineral and other natural resources are coping with legal, economic and political pressures to comply with government and industry demands for resource extraction and exploitation.

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

News release: Wahgoshig First Nation is going to court on December 1, 2011 to seek an urgent injunction to immediately stop drilling operations in a sacred area of Wahgoshig’s traditional territory. The area is immediately adjacent to the Wahgoshig reserve and is known to contain burial grounds as well as other archaeological sites. It is also an area frequented by Wahgoshig community members for hunting, trapping, fishing, medicine gathering, and ceremonial activities.

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Open letter: At a time of increased activity of Canadian companies in Colombia and following implementation of the Canada-Colombia Free Trade Agreement, Canadian ecumenical and civil society organizations are calling upon the Canadian Embassy in Bogotá to ensure that Canadian companies respect the right of communities to free, prior, and informed consent, as enshrined in national and international law. The letter is a response to an urgent action issued by the Cañamomo Lomaprieta Indigenous Resguardo in the department of Caldas.

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Former Chief of the Ardoch Algonquin, Robert Lovelace, gave this address to an Amnesty International gathering in Toronto in October 2011. He provides a brief update of the situation of the Ardoch's confrontation with Frontenac Ventures, and comments on current industry and government approach to Corporate Social Responsibility, reforms to the Ontario Mining Act, his solidarity work with Palestine and indigenous resistence in Canada. He ends with a call to action to join the struggle "to restore the indigenous balance with the earth and its replenishing cycles that really sustain life."

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

News release: Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug (KI) Chief Donny Morris is urgently calling on Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty to intervene to stop mining exploration activity on a sacred KI ancestral burial site.

Monday, August 22, 2011

News release from Algonquin First Nations of Eagle Village and Wolf Lake: Last week, the Algonquin First Nations of Eagle Village and Wolf Lake sent a letter to Premier Charest indicating their rejection of the current Quebec Mining Act and Bill 14, a bill that proposes to modify the Act.

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

For a relatively small project, Castle Resources' proposed Elmtree gold mine is raising a lot of concerns amongst the citizens of north-eastern New Brunswick.